With a potential light-heavyweight title shot hanging in the balance of the main event, Rua insists he isn’t overlooking his opponent, but the belt is, of course, his ultimate goal.

Who that shot comes against is ultimately irrelevant. After violent histories with both current champ Jon Jones and his UFC 151 opponent, Dan Henderson, Rua is expecting rematches with them both.

“It doesn’t matter,” Rua said when asked who he’d prefer to win the UFC 151 headliner. “I’m sure that I’m going to fight with both again, so it doesn’t matter. I don’t have a preference.”

Rua, of course, fought both Henderson and Jones in 2011 – slipping in a win over Forrest Griffin between losses to the two UFC 151 main-eventers. Both fights saw Rua take incredible damage, and the Henderson fight, a particularly bloody affair, was named the Fighters Only 2011 World MMA Awards Fight of the Year. That contest was so harsh, Rua revealed on FOX’s recent “Road to the Octagon” special that his mom pleaded with him to walk away from the sport.

However, Rua said the thought never even crossed his mind.

“It never even passed in my mind to stop,” Rua told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) through his manager and interpreter, Julio Heller. “It’s just a regular reaction for any mother in the world who watches a tough fight and wants the best for their son. But it never passed through my mind to stop. Now everything is OK, and she supports me.”

Vera doesn’t bring the same credentials as Jones or Henderson to the cage, and most MMA pundits aren’t expecting to see quite the same type of fight. But Rua said he respects the 10-year veteran and believes he deserves to be in such a high-profile matchup.

“I have a lot of respect for Brandon Vera,” Rua said. “Brandon has been on this road for a long, long time, too. The guy has a great background in the business of MMA. I think he deserves it, just like many other guys who have been on the road for a long time.”

But now, Rua must look to destroy Vera. Victory alone does not guarantee a future title shot. Instead, UFC president Dana White recently said the victor who looks the most impressive out of Saturday’s Rua vs. Vera and Ryan Bader vs. Lyoto Machida contests will get to face the winner of Jones vs. Henderson.

The 30-year-old Rua, himself a former UFC champion, said that revelation – which came only after fans complained of White’s previous promise to put the Rua-Vera winner into a title shot – changes very little in his approach to the fight.

“I prefer to look at it from a different perspective,” Rua said. “I don’t look at it as any kind of pressure but as a way to have more motivation for the fight next Saturday.

“It doesn’t matter. The belt is a result of a good job, good work. I’m now focused on the fight of next Saturday. Then I’m going to start to think about the future. Right now, all that matters is Saturday’s fight.”

Rua and Vera headline Saturday’s UFC on FOX 4 event, which takes place at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. FOX broadcasts the evening’s four-fight main card, which follows six bouts that air on FUEL TV.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.